(500) Days of Summer

(500) Days of Summer is cute and stars two most promising and adorable young actors. I just wish it wasn’t trying so hard to be original and creative. Summer (played by Zooey Deschanel) is a free spirit and doesn’t really believe in true love; on the other hand, Tom (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is an old-fashioned romantic. He falls in love with Summer at first sight. The movie tracks the relationship from its sweet, innocent beginning to the bitter aftermath. It is a truthful portrayal about love and relationship. Director Marc Webb, writers Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber choose to tell the story in a non-linear way. One second the audience sees Tom exuberant in the company’s elevator at the beginning of his love affair and next minute Tom is crestfallen in the same elevator after the break-up. Webb also uses split screen from time to time to show what Tom’s expectations are and what the reality is. It is nice to see all these interesting ideas, but it doesn’t serve the story here. This is a love story that will be best told in a straight forward way. Deschanel and Gordon-Levitt are wonderful together. Gordon-Levitt is a dead ringer for the late Heath Ledger. He has been consistently seeking out small but interesting roles to play. He will be THE actor to watch in the future. Not only do Deschanel’s big green eyes, raven hair and translucent skin make her irresistible on screen, she also knows how to use her assets to elicit emotions out of the audience. Deschanel and Gordon-Levitt make this movie enjoyable.